The fire at a DHL warehouse in the British suburb of Minworth on 22 July may have been caused by an incendiary device planted by Russian spies on an aircraft, according to The Guardian.

MI5 chief Ken McCallum warned that British investigators suspect the device is part of a broader campaign carried out by Russian spies across Europe this year to cause chaos on British and European streets. Meanwhile, media reports suggest that Russia’s motive was likely an attempt to damage Ukraine’s Western allies.

Intelligence chiefs from the UK and other countries condemned the alleged attack as reckless and dangerous. McCallum argued that the plotting was counter-productive for the Kremlin because it was “driving increased operational coordination with partners across Europe and beyond.”

No casualties were reported as a result of the summer fire. The Minworth warehouse handles parcel processing for deliveries. The Guardian writes that the dangerous package reportedly arrived at the DHL warehouse by air. However, it remains unclear whether the package arrived via a cargo or passenger plane and where it was destined to go.

It is noted that if the package containing the incendiary device had ignited mid-flight, it could have had serious consequences.

Earlier, a similar incident occurred in late July in Germany when a suspicious package bound for a flight caught fire at another DHL facility in Leipzig. Investigators are now looking for connections between these cases.

This week, German authorities warned that if the package had ignited in the air, it could have caused a plane crash.

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• Suspected Russian saboteur faces life imprisonment for railway plot in Kyiv
• Kyiv resident, 16, reportedly recruited by Russia arrested for plotting arson on Ukrainian military vehicles